Sermon Illustrations for Proper 17 | Ordinary Time 22 (2016)
Illustration
Object:
Jeremiah 2:4-13
Rejection isn’t easy to deal with, for us and apparently for God. Jeremiah shares God’s pain at the nation of Israel turning from their connection with, love for, and worship of God. The people have wandered away -- worshiping false gods, engaging in pagan sacrifices, ignoring the Law. God, who brought them out of slavery, is being ignored -- and the pain is present in the words God seeks Jeremiah to share.
I can remember the pain of being rejected as a teen. I was a little plump, a little bossy, pretty smart, and had a good singing voice. Those were gifts. I was a pretty healthy, pretty capable teen, a good friend and the confidant of a lot of the guys in my school. That meant I was seen as a friend but not as a girlfriend, someone to talk with and solve problems with but not someone to date. That rejection hurt a lot. I bet we all have those rejection stories, those if-only stories in our lives, in the past or maybe even in the present. Imagine the feeling of rejection God has as almost a whole nation, a whole people God has protected and nurtured, rejects God in favor of the god of the moment, the god of convenience.
Are you rejecting God, ignoring the presence of God or worshiping at the altar of beauty, worldly success, money, or power? Have you moved away from worship of the One True God? Remember your feelings of rejection? Imagine what God is feeling.
Bonnie B.
Jeremiah 2:4-13
The girl waited in the living room of her house. She was dressed and ready for a day of fun. Her dad told her that they’d go shopping at the mall, have lunch (just the two of them), and then see a movie. It was going to be a “dad-daughter” day. He said to be ready at ten o’clock. It was after ten, and she was ready. She continued to look out of the window every few minutes. Where was he? “He said he’d be here.”
The young man stood by the porch. His mom had promised that she’d take him to the park today. He didn’t get to see her as much since the divorce, but he was really looking forward to this. He watched the street for any sign of her car. She was a little late, but that was normal. He continued to wait and watch. No car turned onto his street. Where was she? “She said we’d go today.”
Frustration and disappointment; these two come together when someone doesn’t do what he or she was supposed to do. It is difficult to understand why people don’t act as they should, but what is obvious is the hurt, pain, and sorrow that it brings. We see it on all kinds of faces -- children, spouses, parents, and the list goes on. God understands this too. He’s experienced the pain of people he loves turning away from him. This passage from Jeremiah is a sad one. God’s people have betrayed him. They have given what belongs to God to idols. They have abandoned his teachings and will now reap what they have sown. This passage is just or fair, but it is also heart-wrenching. God’s people chose to give him up for worthless things. That was hard to understand then. It’s hard to understand now.
Bill T.
Jeremiah 2:4-13
It was said -- by somebody, though there is disagreement about exactly who -- that those who forget the past are condemned to repeat it. But Jeremiah seems to be saying that those who forget the past are condemned... period.
For Jeremiah it’s not a question of people asking God “What have you done for me lately?” -- it’s the fact that they don’t seem to remember that God has done anything at all. The affirmations of God in the Hebrew scriptures include history. Moses learns that the Lord is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Remind yourself what their history with God is like, and you’ll know what God is like.
Jeremiah focuses on the story of the Exodus, of God creating a people out of a group of slaves, and then reminds the people that in the past no one had to ask why is God great and where is God, anyway! Their relationship was with a living God. And if Jeremiah’s contemporaries have no relationship, it’s because they have turned to gods who are not gods. The people have abandoned fountains of living water for cracked and empty cisterns.
Ask yourself and your congregation: Have we forgotten our history? Do we even have a history? Share together church, denominational, and personal history with God and remember: We have a history!
Remembering our church and denominational history!
Frank R.
Jeremiah 2:4-13
The two sins Jeremiah identifies are first, forsaking God; then second, making a replacement.
People who create monetary or physical replacements for God show that they have forsaken him first. We have trouble with a vacuum. It has to be filled with something. If a person loses or deserts a husband or wife, they will be looking for a replacement. If we can’t find God in our lives, then we look for a replacement: money, television, sports, games, another faith, etc. We look for something to fill our lives.
I have talked with some prisoners who had filled their time with bad things, but when they were sent to solitary confinement, they ended up looking for God. That is one reason they called on me. Solitary can destroy some, but can get others to start thinking.
My father did not stray from the Lord all his life! I think there is an implication for our fatherland. During political debates, we sometimes learn how far our country has strayed from the God who brought the Pilgrims here. Some are trying to remove the Ten Commandments from public property or take the name of God out of legislation or political speeches. You rarely hear the name of God mentioned in government discussions of sex differences, abortions, relations with other faiths like Islam, etc. There has even been talk about taking “in God we trust” off our currency!
The Lord brought most of our ancestors from foreign shores, where they might have been escaping some difficult situations. He saved us! That was one reason that many Christians left a country that was persecuting them in some way (if they were not in the official denomination like the Church of England!)
The danger is trying to invent or take over another country’s god. We like a god that we can create that fits our mental picture and our desires.
One fellow said that he would like to serve God, but in an advisory capacity. Does that fit us sometimes? We certainly don’t want to do anything that will destroy future generations. But we might want to do it ourselves without checking the Bible. We need to look in the springs of living water that only come from the God we find in his word. That is why we come to his house every week!
Bob O.
Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16
When death comes, the one with the most toys wins!
That sign once hung in the showroom of a recreational boat dealership at an upscale summer resort. One can only guess the motivation of the person who fixed the sign to the wall. Perhaps it was intended as self-evident commentary on the absurd. It conjures the image of an outdoor funeral where expensive boats, paintings by the world’s greatest artists, recreational vehicles, a collection of top-of-the-line automobiles, sporting equipment, and photographs of other “toys” surround an open casket. The minister points to the remains of the dearly departed and declares: “We so admired him. He went out a winner.”
It is, on the other hand, possible to hypothesize a certain distorted truth in the statement. The one that accumulates the most toys will, after all, have more toys than others. That could be assessed as some form of winning. Of course, that leaves us to wonder what prize might be given for toy accumulation and how a now-dead winner would care that he or she had won some strange toy accumulating contest.
The more likely reason for the showroom sign was that the dealership owner understood what would motivate his or her clientele to buy expensive boats. It is human nature to think that the deepest joy is found by acquiring more stuff.
Scripture teaches something very different. As Hebrew 13:5 puts it, “Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be content with what you have.”
R. Robert C.
Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16
Our lesson gives us a lot of instructions and urges us to be content. If you are content, the kind of behavior urged happens spontaneously. Buddha called contentment “the greatest wealth.” Perhaps we can say that contentment gives you all you need. And it comes from hanging around Christ. This is why this lesson ends with a reference to worship.
Martin Luther contends that the whole Christian life is an act of worship (Luther’s Works, Vol. 3, p. 204). It is as Augustine said: “And what is the worship of him except the love of him, by which we now desire to see him...” (Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First Series, Vol. 3, p. 204). Seeing God in worship gives hope and meaning to life, for worship “provides a means of escape from the tedium wherein all minutes look alike...” (Marian Micks, The Future Present, pp. 86-87). Content with this, such worship drives us to do liberating work, according to James Cone, the founder of Black theology: “In the act of worship itself, the experience of liberation becomes a constituent of the community’s being.... It is the power of God’s Spirit invading the lives of the people, ‘building them up where they are torn down and propping them up on every leaning side.’ ”
Mark E.
Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16
Scientists have discovered a new planet that has been designated as Kepler-452b. Spotted by NASA’s Kepler telescope which resides in space, the planet is 1,400 light years from Earth. It is in what is called the “Goldilocks” zone, where it is neither too hot nor too cold for water to persist. Sara Seager, an MIT astronomer, said, “You could say this is the first viable ‘Goldilocks’ planet -- with dozens more potentially.”
Application: Like the universe, Jesus is unchanging. But also like the universe, we are learning and discovering more about Jesus as we walk with him in faith.
Ron L.
Luke 14:1, 7-14
Humility seems to be a frequent topic in the stories and parables Jesus shares. Don’t think too highly of yourself. Don’t sit in the place of honor. Don’t offer gifts to those who can repay you. There are a lot of things Jesus brings to our attention in the gospels. Some of them make sense in our culture. Some do not. While humility could be a contemporary theme, it is even more so a historical one. In first-century Palestine we are seeing a culture of hierarchies, of honor and shame; a culture in which honor is sought at all costs and the exchange of favors among the rich and powerful was the norm.
Jesus, counter-cultural as always, reminds the people that human status is not important. Humility and care for the least among us is important. Being invited to the best party and the best home isn’t the issue. Exchanging favors with those who can repay isn’t the best course of action. Rather, be humble. Share with those who have little. Offer yourself to those who have nothing to give you in return. Then you will be sharing mercy, justice, compassion, and the love of all. That’s not a bad reminder for us in the 21st century.
Bonnie B.
Luke 14:1, 7-14
Humility is one of those more slippery human traits. It’s hard to be humble. Consider this story.
A man received a promotion to the position of vice president of the company he worked for. The promotion went to his head, and for weeks on end he bragged to anyone and everyone that he was now VP. His bragging came to an abrupt end when his wife, so embarrassed by his behavior, said: “Listen, Bob, it’s not that big a deal. These days everyone’s a vice president. Why they even have a vice president of peas down at the supermarket!”
Somewhat deflated, Bob rang the local supermarket to find out if this was true. “Can I speak to the vice president of peas, please?” he asked, to which the reply came: “...of fresh or frozen?”
It’s easy for us to get “puffed up” and a bit proud of who we are and what we’ve accomplished. Jesus knew the temptation of that and spoke to it directly in the account we read today. He makes it clear that those who exalt themselves will be humbled, but those who humble themselves will be exalted. The next time you’re tempted to take the best seat in the house and have all eyes fixed on you and your glory, remember that the vice-president of peas may also be present. Be humble.
Bill T.
Luke 14:1, 7-14
Actors in the Elizabethan era frightened right-thinking people because they could play a beggar one day and a king the next. They could portray a simple tradesman or farmer, then appear as a knight wielding a bright sword. What they were demonstrating in a class-conscious society was that there really was no such thing as nobility, as upper and lower classes. We are all the same.
First-century Palestine was no less class-conscious, and people were very particular about who they ate with and who they were seen with. They struggled for the place of honor, and coveted high standing in the eyes of those they considered important people. And there was no hiding who you ate with and where you sat. Hosting someone more important than you might be the path to rising to a higher station in life -- as the invitation would be returned.
The windows of homes were often high and wide so that air could circulate. People felt free to look in as they passed in order to get a look at who was eating with whom.
Against this backdrop Jesus tells the man who invited him to eat, someone who hoped to grow in the estimation of others because he had hosted a great prophet, teacher, and holy man, that we should not seek to be seen only with those who could raise our social status. We should invite the poor, the needy, and those who can do us no good at all in the eyes of the world. Jesus was ignoring, and even tearing down, the hierarchies in a class-conscious society, and clothing those whose dress made them outcasts in garments of spiritual respectability. Those who invite others who can do them no good in the worldly sense are those who are truly happy or blessed!
Frank R.
Luke 14:1, 7-14
When I went to a party at my son’s house, I expected to be seated next to him. I was, but the point is I could have set an example to him by taking a lower seat.
I have been reading some items by actors who were famous. Some demanded the highest seats of honor or they would be hurt, but a few said that they hated fame and wanted to take the lowest places. They even turned down offers to take higher seats!
Can you imagine Donald Trump humbly taking a seat way at the back of an important group? He would count on most of the others to push him up to the seats of honor or he might walk out! I’m sure it would hurt Hillary Clinton if Bernie Sanders were pushed ahead of her, as it would have hurt Trump if Ted Cruz or John Kasich were given the top order.
The main reason I use politics as an example here is that it is a topic known by everyone. You can replace or rearrange those names if you wish, but you may want to wait until the election is over. You can’t turn on the TV without seeing them!
No one should have been elevated more than Jesus, the very Son of God, but the Pharisees belonged to a different party! Notice that even Jesus is not suggesting that he should have the best place. He even rode a humble donkey instead of a stallion on Palm Sunday. The leaders did not accept him as being who he truly was
Jesus makes a more important “suggestion” to all of us.
With all the needs in the world, we should be ready to share what the Lord has blessed us with. It might be a banquet at your home, or just a gift in the offering plate.
My grandparents lived a block from the railroad station, and they often invited in for coffee the transients who rang their bell. Their place must have been marked by transients, so many came. They were often given some of Grandpa’s old funeral outfits when they left. It made an impression on us kids to do the same when we grew up. I think we have -- we are helping prisoners and former prisoners.
I helped vagrants who came to my first church in Dayton Ohio. They most often just wanted money, but I knew that it might be spent for alcohol so I most often offered to take them out to dinner or drive them to job appointments. There were a few who just walked out the door, but the ones I helped often came back to thank me. That was the only reward I looked forward to.
At one of my churches we invited the homeless to come for Thanksgiving dinner. It was not often crowded, but we always got a few. The other option for any congregation is to give support in the offering plate. We each have to decide. Sometimes a picture of a starving church in a magazine, or the story of a disaster in the newspaper, gives us a nudge from God. The Lord will help us. All we have to do is obey the nudge.
Bob O.
Rejection isn’t easy to deal with, for us and apparently for God. Jeremiah shares God’s pain at the nation of Israel turning from their connection with, love for, and worship of God. The people have wandered away -- worshiping false gods, engaging in pagan sacrifices, ignoring the Law. God, who brought them out of slavery, is being ignored -- and the pain is present in the words God seeks Jeremiah to share.
I can remember the pain of being rejected as a teen. I was a little plump, a little bossy, pretty smart, and had a good singing voice. Those were gifts. I was a pretty healthy, pretty capable teen, a good friend and the confidant of a lot of the guys in my school. That meant I was seen as a friend but not as a girlfriend, someone to talk with and solve problems with but not someone to date. That rejection hurt a lot. I bet we all have those rejection stories, those if-only stories in our lives, in the past or maybe even in the present. Imagine the feeling of rejection God has as almost a whole nation, a whole people God has protected and nurtured, rejects God in favor of the god of the moment, the god of convenience.
Are you rejecting God, ignoring the presence of God or worshiping at the altar of beauty, worldly success, money, or power? Have you moved away from worship of the One True God? Remember your feelings of rejection? Imagine what God is feeling.
Bonnie B.
Jeremiah 2:4-13
The girl waited in the living room of her house. She was dressed and ready for a day of fun. Her dad told her that they’d go shopping at the mall, have lunch (just the two of them), and then see a movie. It was going to be a “dad-daughter” day. He said to be ready at ten o’clock. It was after ten, and she was ready. She continued to look out of the window every few minutes. Where was he? “He said he’d be here.”
The young man stood by the porch. His mom had promised that she’d take him to the park today. He didn’t get to see her as much since the divorce, but he was really looking forward to this. He watched the street for any sign of her car. She was a little late, but that was normal. He continued to wait and watch. No car turned onto his street. Where was she? “She said we’d go today.”
Frustration and disappointment; these two come together when someone doesn’t do what he or she was supposed to do. It is difficult to understand why people don’t act as they should, but what is obvious is the hurt, pain, and sorrow that it brings. We see it on all kinds of faces -- children, spouses, parents, and the list goes on. God understands this too. He’s experienced the pain of people he loves turning away from him. This passage from Jeremiah is a sad one. God’s people have betrayed him. They have given what belongs to God to idols. They have abandoned his teachings and will now reap what they have sown. This passage is just or fair, but it is also heart-wrenching. God’s people chose to give him up for worthless things. That was hard to understand then. It’s hard to understand now.
Bill T.
Jeremiah 2:4-13
It was said -- by somebody, though there is disagreement about exactly who -- that those who forget the past are condemned to repeat it. But Jeremiah seems to be saying that those who forget the past are condemned... period.
For Jeremiah it’s not a question of people asking God “What have you done for me lately?” -- it’s the fact that they don’t seem to remember that God has done anything at all. The affirmations of God in the Hebrew scriptures include history. Moses learns that the Lord is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Remind yourself what their history with God is like, and you’ll know what God is like.
Jeremiah focuses on the story of the Exodus, of God creating a people out of a group of slaves, and then reminds the people that in the past no one had to ask why is God great and where is God, anyway! Their relationship was with a living God. And if Jeremiah’s contemporaries have no relationship, it’s because they have turned to gods who are not gods. The people have abandoned fountains of living water for cracked and empty cisterns.
Ask yourself and your congregation: Have we forgotten our history? Do we even have a history? Share together church, denominational, and personal history with God and remember: We have a history!
Remembering our church and denominational history!
Frank R.
Jeremiah 2:4-13
The two sins Jeremiah identifies are first, forsaking God; then second, making a replacement.
People who create monetary or physical replacements for God show that they have forsaken him first. We have trouble with a vacuum. It has to be filled with something. If a person loses or deserts a husband or wife, they will be looking for a replacement. If we can’t find God in our lives, then we look for a replacement: money, television, sports, games, another faith, etc. We look for something to fill our lives.
I have talked with some prisoners who had filled their time with bad things, but when they were sent to solitary confinement, they ended up looking for God. That is one reason they called on me. Solitary can destroy some, but can get others to start thinking.
My father did not stray from the Lord all his life! I think there is an implication for our fatherland. During political debates, we sometimes learn how far our country has strayed from the God who brought the Pilgrims here. Some are trying to remove the Ten Commandments from public property or take the name of God out of legislation or political speeches. You rarely hear the name of God mentioned in government discussions of sex differences, abortions, relations with other faiths like Islam, etc. There has even been talk about taking “in God we trust” off our currency!
The Lord brought most of our ancestors from foreign shores, where they might have been escaping some difficult situations. He saved us! That was one reason that many Christians left a country that was persecuting them in some way (if they were not in the official denomination like the Church of England!)
The danger is trying to invent or take over another country’s god. We like a god that we can create that fits our mental picture and our desires.
One fellow said that he would like to serve God, but in an advisory capacity. Does that fit us sometimes? We certainly don’t want to do anything that will destroy future generations. But we might want to do it ourselves without checking the Bible. We need to look in the springs of living water that only come from the God we find in his word. That is why we come to his house every week!
Bob O.
Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16
When death comes, the one with the most toys wins!
That sign once hung in the showroom of a recreational boat dealership at an upscale summer resort. One can only guess the motivation of the person who fixed the sign to the wall. Perhaps it was intended as self-evident commentary on the absurd. It conjures the image of an outdoor funeral where expensive boats, paintings by the world’s greatest artists, recreational vehicles, a collection of top-of-the-line automobiles, sporting equipment, and photographs of other “toys” surround an open casket. The minister points to the remains of the dearly departed and declares: “We so admired him. He went out a winner.”
It is, on the other hand, possible to hypothesize a certain distorted truth in the statement. The one that accumulates the most toys will, after all, have more toys than others. That could be assessed as some form of winning. Of course, that leaves us to wonder what prize might be given for toy accumulation and how a now-dead winner would care that he or she had won some strange toy accumulating contest.
The more likely reason for the showroom sign was that the dealership owner understood what would motivate his or her clientele to buy expensive boats. It is human nature to think that the deepest joy is found by acquiring more stuff.
Scripture teaches something very different. As Hebrew 13:5 puts it, “Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be content with what you have.”
R. Robert C.
Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16
Our lesson gives us a lot of instructions and urges us to be content. If you are content, the kind of behavior urged happens spontaneously. Buddha called contentment “the greatest wealth.” Perhaps we can say that contentment gives you all you need. And it comes from hanging around Christ. This is why this lesson ends with a reference to worship.
Martin Luther contends that the whole Christian life is an act of worship (Luther’s Works, Vol. 3, p. 204). It is as Augustine said: “And what is the worship of him except the love of him, by which we now desire to see him...” (Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First Series, Vol. 3, p. 204). Seeing God in worship gives hope and meaning to life, for worship “provides a means of escape from the tedium wherein all minutes look alike...” (Marian Micks, The Future Present, pp. 86-87). Content with this, such worship drives us to do liberating work, according to James Cone, the founder of Black theology: “In the act of worship itself, the experience of liberation becomes a constituent of the community’s being.... It is the power of God’s Spirit invading the lives of the people, ‘building them up where they are torn down and propping them up on every leaning side.’ ”
Mark E.
Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16
Scientists have discovered a new planet that has been designated as Kepler-452b. Spotted by NASA’s Kepler telescope which resides in space, the planet is 1,400 light years from Earth. It is in what is called the “Goldilocks” zone, where it is neither too hot nor too cold for water to persist. Sara Seager, an MIT astronomer, said, “You could say this is the first viable ‘Goldilocks’ planet -- with dozens more potentially.”
Application: Like the universe, Jesus is unchanging. But also like the universe, we are learning and discovering more about Jesus as we walk with him in faith.
Ron L.
Luke 14:1, 7-14
Humility seems to be a frequent topic in the stories and parables Jesus shares. Don’t think too highly of yourself. Don’t sit in the place of honor. Don’t offer gifts to those who can repay you. There are a lot of things Jesus brings to our attention in the gospels. Some of them make sense in our culture. Some do not. While humility could be a contemporary theme, it is even more so a historical one. In first-century Palestine we are seeing a culture of hierarchies, of honor and shame; a culture in which honor is sought at all costs and the exchange of favors among the rich and powerful was the norm.
Jesus, counter-cultural as always, reminds the people that human status is not important. Humility and care for the least among us is important. Being invited to the best party and the best home isn’t the issue. Exchanging favors with those who can repay isn’t the best course of action. Rather, be humble. Share with those who have little. Offer yourself to those who have nothing to give you in return. Then you will be sharing mercy, justice, compassion, and the love of all. That’s not a bad reminder for us in the 21st century.
Bonnie B.
Luke 14:1, 7-14
Humility is one of those more slippery human traits. It’s hard to be humble. Consider this story.
A man received a promotion to the position of vice president of the company he worked for. The promotion went to his head, and for weeks on end he bragged to anyone and everyone that he was now VP. His bragging came to an abrupt end when his wife, so embarrassed by his behavior, said: “Listen, Bob, it’s not that big a deal. These days everyone’s a vice president. Why they even have a vice president of peas down at the supermarket!”
Somewhat deflated, Bob rang the local supermarket to find out if this was true. “Can I speak to the vice president of peas, please?” he asked, to which the reply came: “...of fresh or frozen?”
It’s easy for us to get “puffed up” and a bit proud of who we are and what we’ve accomplished. Jesus knew the temptation of that and spoke to it directly in the account we read today. He makes it clear that those who exalt themselves will be humbled, but those who humble themselves will be exalted. The next time you’re tempted to take the best seat in the house and have all eyes fixed on you and your glory, remember that the vice-president of peas may also be present. Be humble.
Bill T.
Luke 14:1, 7-14
Actors in the Elizabethan era frightened right-thinking people because they could play a beggar one day and a king the next. They could portray a simple tradesman or farmer, then appear as a knight wielding a bright sword. What they were demonstrating in a class-conscious society was that there really was no such thing as nobility, as upper and lower classes. We are all the same.
First-century Palestine was no less class-conscious, and people were very particular about who they ate with and who they were seen with. They struggled for the place of honor, and coveted high standing in the eyes of those they considered important people. And there was no hiding who you ate with and where you sat. Hosting someone more important than you might be the path to rising to a higher station in life -- as the invitation would be returned.
The windows of homes were often high and wide so that air could circulate. People felt free to look in as they passed in order to get a look at who was eating with whom.
Against this backdrop Jesus tells the man who invited him to eat, someone who hoped to grow in the estimation of others because he had hosted a great prophet, teacher, and holy man, that we should not seek to be seen only with those who could raise our social status. We should invite the poor, the needy, and those who can do us no good at all in the eyes of the world. Jesus was ignoring, and even tearing down, the hierarchies in a class-conscious society, and clothing those whose dress made them outcasts in garments of spiritual respectability. Those who invite others who can do them no good in the worldly sense are those who are truly happy or blessed!
Frank R.
Luke 14:1, 7-14
When I went to a party at my son’s house, I expected to be seated next to him. I was, but the point is I could have set an example to him by taking a lower seat.
I have been reading some items by actors who were famous. Some demanded the highest seats of honor or they would be hurt, but a few said that they hated fame and wanted to take the lowest places. They even turned down offers to take higher seats!
Can you imagine Donald Trump humbly taking a seat way at the back of an important group? He would count on most of the others to push him up to the seats of honor or he might walk out! I’m sure it would hurt Hillary Clinton if Bernie Sanders were pushed ahead of her, as it would have hurt Trump if Ted Cruz or John Kasich were given the top order.
The main reason I use politics as an example here is that it is a topic known by everyone. You can replace or rearrange those names if you wish, but you may want to wait until the election is over. You can’t turn on the TV without seeing them!
No one should have been elevated more than Jesus, the very Son of God, but the Pharisees belonged to a different party! Notice that even Jesus is not suggesting that he should have the best place. He even rode a humble donkey instead of a stallion on Palm Sunday. The leaders did not accept him as being who he truly was
Jesus makes a more important “suggestion” to all of us.
With all the needs in the world, we should be ready to share what the Lord has blessed us with. It might be a banquet at your home, or just a gift in the offering plate.
My grandparents lived a block from the railroad station, and they often invited in for coffee the transients who rang their bell. Their place must have been marked by transients, so many came. They were often given some of Grandpa’s old funeral outfits when they left. It made an impression on us kids to do the same when we grew up. I think we have -- we are helping prisoners and former prisoners.
I helped vagrants who came to my first church in Dayton Ohio. They most often just wanted money, but I knew that it might be spent for alcohol so I most often offered to take them out to dinner or drive them to job appointments. There were a few who just walked out the door, but the ones I helped often came back to thank me. That was the only reward I looked forward to.
At one of my churches we invited the homeless to come for Thanksgiving dinner. It was not often crowded, but we always got a few. The other option for any congregation is to give support in the offering plate. We each have to decide. Sometimes a picture of a starving church in a magazine, or the story of a disaster in the newspaper, gives us a nudge from God. The Lord will help us. All we have to do is obey the nudge.
Bob O.
